This morning the world lost a loving, brave, bright sparkly star. (I hate cancer)

If you never had the pleasure of meeting or talking with Lisa, believe me, she was a sweetheart. She loved her husband and son and pets and writing and writers...and mermaids. Her books:

and

Please keep her family in your thoughts prayers.

Read L. K. Madigan's Last Blog Postand the love she inspired. But I encourage you to also read through all her posts and interviews, because they are a wealth of information and proof of her generosity and love of helping her fellow writers.

Anyone who's watched Inside the Actor's Studio will be familiar with the questionnaire. The show's host, James Lipton, asks it of every celebrity guest at the close of the interview. The questionnaire was originally created by Bernard Pivot, a French journalist, for the cultural series he hosted on French television from 1991-2001, called Bouillon de Culture.

A celebration of my love for WRITERS and AUTHORS and Agents and Publishers and Editors and Cover Artists and READERS and Librarians and ALL HUMANS who care and treat others with kindness and respect.

To those who support others and check their egos at the door.

To those who share and give and lend a hand.

To those who genuinely feel joy for another's success.

To those who who show their gratitude and give back.

To those who follow our peers back on Twitter and/or their blogs...not caring about numbers/status, Doing so to show fellowship and make a friend.

To those who pimp and promote for others before themselves.

To those who stop work on their own WiP (or watching TV/gaming/sleeping/family time) to critique for another writer.

To those who take the time to leave thoughtful comments.

To those who give to others before they receive.

To those who give expecting never to receive.

To those who understand, or are seeking to understand, that WE GET BY GIVING.

To those who lift us up when we feel down.

THANK YOU. Thank you. Thank you.

Lola LOVES YOU!

Thank you for your grace.

Thank you for your love and kindness and humor.

Thank you for inspiring others.

And so, this brings me to the part where I PAY IT FORWARD (Lolapalooza-style) and GIVE PRIZES!!

Is this not the most beautiful bus you've ever seen? LOVE!

First, the Prizes!

1 Grand Prize Winner will receive:

I Think You Are Wonderful by Philosophy gift set

'Lola' (pink) nail polish by Zoya

The First Five Pages by Noah Lukeman

(If you already have any of these items, you can always PAY it FORWARD by sharing)

(Also, sorry, these prizes are only open to U.S. and Canada...but if you are from elsewhere, PLEASE play along and I'll do lots of shout-out links)

Okay, so here's all you have to do to earn a chance to win:

Be a follower in my little box of friends on my sidebar and leave me a comment on this post.

Yep. That's it. ☺

Also... to really make this giveaway even more funand meaningfuland to earn extra entries...

here's the Pay it Forward by Showing Love and Kindness part:

Earn one extra entry for each mission below accomplished:

(PLEASE KEEP TRACK and write your RUNNING TOTALS, 'cause I hates maths and am a bear of very little brain...and have them in to me by midnight eastern February 28th)

1) Link to and 'shout out' your gratitude about someone(s) (on your next blog post) who has helped you along your blogging/writing path. Perhaps they don't know they've helped you. You might just make their day/week/month. (come back here and tell us in my comments...let us share in your fun and go to your blog and then follow your link to theirs...join in your thankful party :)

2) Support someone, pimp them/their blog/their book/their post/send them a card/help them/send an email to cheer up someone who needs cheering...pay for the coffee or toll of the person behind you...do something kind and generous for someone else who doesn't expect it. (Then come back here and tell us in my comments! Earn an extra entry.)

3) If you come back to my comments and visit those that do the above and give them some love in their comments...then come back here and continue to total your points in my comments...in other words: visit with and thank others who are kind and earn an entry.

4) If you do something big or something small to make your own Pay It Forward-palooza...please come back here and let us know...and add another entry.

5) Visit, follow and comment on any of the people on my sidebar, blog roll, including the contests.

6)

Rach Writes is doing her second Writers' Platform-Building Crusade. Join the Crusade (and make sure you visit everyone) and earn an extra entry here. You'll make lots of new friends as a bonus.

7) If you've left me more than 5 comments prior to this post, thank you SO much, and add another entry.

8) If you pimp this post/giveaway in a blog post, please come back and link and add another entry.

9) Add one more entry for adding (& keeping) this on your sidebar until the contest is over.

12) Share your favorite story of kindness and how it impacted your and/or someone else's life in my comments and earn another entry.

If you come up with something fabulous, something beyond, and you deem it's worthy of another entry...let us know in my comments and give yourself another entry. :) Thank you for participating! Have fun and spread the kindness.

*PLEASE add your totals in the comments*

Lolapalooza Giveaway ends at midnight (NY eastern time) on Feb. 28th.

Prize winner will be announced March 1st. (prize only open to US and Canada)

2) There are two other really yummy giveaways I'm DYING to win...andyou will too:

Tere's having a Mardi Gras Carnival theme Giveaway from NOLA!

http://bit.ly/hlHW9c Tell her hello for me...and that I want to win! Really I want to be there partying with her, but I'd 'settle' the next best thing...a goodie box from her. She's lovely.

4) I am going (mostly) offline to hunker down for the next 2 weeks to complete current novel and revisions on the last one. Please understand and forgive me for not getting around to visit everyone...you know I will make up for it when I get these projects done. I will visit you like a baddass blogging,tweeting ninja in a couple weeks. I sincerely adore you. I just need the time (and undistracted focus) for a couple weeks. (I will poke my head out of my cave for Nicole's blogfest and visit many of you that day) (and I will check my email/comments daily) (I love parenthetical jabbering) (It's a sickness)

5) Oh, I love this:

And...if you are struggling with believing in yourself as a writer... believe THIS:

May your pen be mighty

About Me

Lola Sharp

My name is Lola. (I'm not a showgirl) Yes, L-O-L-A Lola. It's the least of my worries. Let's move on, shall we?
This blog is mostly about my misadventures on the journey to publication and beyond. My passion for lush prose, quirky characters, art, music, literature, performing arts and anything creative will be a major theme here. This journey of mine will not always be pretty. Much like rubbernecking a train wreck, I know sometimes you just can't help but look at the carnage that is often my life. So strap on your neck brace, helmet and 5-point harness and come along for the ride!
Licentia poetica.